Forgotten
by fantasy137
Summary: What is life? Leo didn't know anymore. But he knew he needed an answer. But things happen, things change, and in the end Leo Valdez was slipping. Slipping away from everyone. Slipping away from himself. There was nothing to keep him grounded. Nothing to live for. No point. There was no point in living. "Not everything can be fixed." Liper, one-shot, read and review!


**First off, if you're following any of my other stories and are wondering why I haven't updated it, blame this one-shot that took over my mind. I'll update stories ASAP, but here's just a one-shot I wrote. I'm not that good at conveying a mood, but it gets a bit...gloomy at one point - well actually the whole story is a tad gloomy - but yeah. Leo may seem OOC, but I'm trying to show how he just breaks when this happens to him. What happens? Read to find out! (I even threw in penguins, so it's gotta be good...right?)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or settings.**

* * *

What is life?

Leo had been pondering the question for days. After the Giant War was over and all of his friends snuggled up with their significant other, Leo was left to roam around Bunker 9, partially fixing something, discovering something else, partially fixing it, discovering something else…it had become quite monotonous.

Well, obviously, idly hammering and fusing things together gave one time to think. Too much time, in Leo's opinion.

He had started asking himself questions. And not you're average questions like, why is the word 'abbreviate' so long (thought that was a good one…) but philosophical questions. And he had started finding answers for his questions, which was possibly worse.

But whatever answer he found was almost always 'because that's how it works in life' or some other life-related thing. Which led him to the question that had been bugging him.

What is life?

Leo's life consisted of tragic events, acting as a pawn in the quest to save the gods, and fixing things that always seemed to break in the end anyways. Was that all there was to life? That's all there was to his life.

Eventually it got so bad that he had to actually look it up.

_**life**_

_**noun**_

_1. __the __condition __that __distinguishes __organisms __from __inorganic __objects __and __dead __organisms, __being manifested __by __growth __through __metabolism__, __reproduction, __and __the __power __of __adaptation __to __environment__ through __changes __originating __internally._

_2. __the __sum __of __the __distinguishing __phenomena __of __organisms, __especially __metabolism, __growth, __reproduction, and __adaptation __to __environment._

_3.__ the __animate __existence __or __period __of __animate __existence __of __an __individual: __to __risk __one's __life; __a __short __life __and __a merry __one._

_4. __a __corresponding __state, __existence, __or __principle __of __existence __conceived __of __as __belonging __to __the __soul:__ eternal __life._

_5. __the __general __or __universal __condition __of __human __existence: __Too __bad, __but __life __is __like __that._

That didn't help much. Leo didn't know what half those words meant.

It was with these depressing thoughts that he was walking through Camp Half-Blood, on one of the few days when he decided to leave his Bunker. His sanctuary. Gods, the sun burned his eyes. He hadn't been out for nearly a week. He knew that he was letting himself slip. He knew that it wasn't good for him. But in his current state, he really didn't care.

There was a slight breeze that was carrying a voice over from the beach. "-I've been meaning to ask you, I just didn't know when the right time was." Leo froze. He knew that voice, it was Jason. Curiosity got the best of him as he crept over, hid behind some bushes and tried to catch a glimpse of what was going on. After all, what did he have to live for?

"Ask me now." That was Piper. Leo peeked around the bush and saw them. They were holding hands, facing each other. As always, Leo felt the familiar pang.

He sort of had a thing for Piper, like it mattered. She was busy with Jason. One of the many reasons why he had started to question life itself. He was brought back to earth by Jason's voice.

"Well, you know I have to leave for Camp Jupiter," he said softly. "Will you come with me?"

Piper seemed startled for a moment, but then she tackled Jason in a hug. "I thought you'd never ask!" she all but squealed.

Leo almost fell from behind his bush. Piper was leaving? Well, he couldn't deny that he had been expecting it. It still hurt though…a lot.

He crawled away from the hugging couple, and when he was a good distance away, he stood up, starting back to the Bunker. He would have to give Piper a going away gift. If it was going to be great, he would have to start immediately.

* * *

Three days later, Leo stepped back to examine his finished project. It had taken a whole lot of attention to detail, several cups of coffee, lots of various metals, and some help from the Apollo cabin to finish it. Leo hadn't really been sleeping, except for lots of short naps. He hadn't left the Bunker other than to go drag an Apollo kid down their.

He had liked working on the project. It was one of the first times in a long while that he had been excited about something, actually caring about it. It had given him a purpose in life, though it was short-lived. He just wanted to see what Piper thought about it. It was all about Piper.

In all honesty, Leo didn't trust Jason too much. Maybe it was just his jealousy, but he kept getting a bad feeling in his stomach whenever he thought about him and Piper being together at Camp Jupiter. He could feel that something was a bit off. That's why he needed to tell Piper that he would always be there for her, no matter what the distance did to them. She needed to know. And maybe, possibly, if she read into the gift enough, she would notice his true feelings for her.

Feeling very optimistic, Leo marched out of the Bunker with the wrapped gift in his hand. He stopped the first person he saw, a bookish looking girl who had to be an Athena kid.

"Hey, have you seen Piper?" he asked. The girl looked at him a little strangely.

"She's leaving for Camp Jupiter today. Right about now. I think you'll be able to find her by the camp borders," she offered helpfully. Leo hastily thanked her and then raced towards the camp borders.

She was leaving just like that? No, it wasn't possible…was it? He arrived at the top of the hill, and looking down he saw her, surrounded by the rest of their friends. She was holding a bag, as were Jason, Hazel and Frank. Percy and Annabeth were watching them, holding hands. Leo was about to run down the hill to meet them and deliver the present, but something stopped him.

Piper was about to leave without saying bye. Forget that, she had never even bothered to tell him that she was leaving! Had he not overheard her, he wouldn't have known. He would have asked someone where Piper was, only to find that she was now on the other side of the country!

To say it hurt would be an understatement. He felt miserable. Completely and utterly miserable. He couldn't go down their now. Clearly, he wasn't wanted their. He watched from his spot on the hill. He watched as they all put their bags in the camp's van and piled in. He watched as they rolled down their windows to wave goodbye to Percy and Annabeth. He watched as they drove away. All of them. Every last one of them had forgotten him. Even sweet, sensitive Hazel.

Leo ran back to Bunker 9.

If this was life, then what was the point of it? No point at all.

Life was pointless.

* * *

The entire trip to Camp Jupiter, Piper felt like something was wrong. Something was not quite right. Something…but she couldn't remember.

"Are you all right?" Jason asked.

"I feel like I forgot something," Piper said, closing her eyes. "Something important."

"No worries, we'll just have them send it to us," Jason answered easily. But Piper still couldn't shake the feeling.

Even at Camp Jupiter, the feeling stuck. Something was off…but what was it? She got her answer a week after arriving.

She was walking past a building when she heard loud banging. She turned to Jason who was standing next to her. "What's that building?" she asked.

"The forges," Jason replied. "Children of Vulcan can't get enough of it." The word 'Vulcan' immediately sparked a memory. Of a cheerful smile, curly black hair, fiery brown eyes and a contagious laugh. Of Leo Valdez.

"Leo!" Piper shrieked the minute it registered in her head. "We never said bye to Leo! We never even told him that we were going!"

What kind of a horrible friend was she? Forget friend, she was a horrible person! She wished some god would come down and curse her right then. She wanted to charmspeak herself to jump off a cliff. Something – anything to punish her properly. Jason was blinking and looking extremely confused.

"Calm down Piper," said Jason. He sounded dreamy.

"I can't calm down! I can't believe that I – I-" Piper stopped at a loss for words.

"Shhh, it's okay Piper," Jason said soothingly, pulling her into a hug. "It's fine."

"I need to contact him," Piper said pulling away from Jason. "I'll Iris Message him." With that, Piper was racing off to find the nearest water source. She found a hose lying around and positioned it so it made a rainbow. With her other hand, she searched her pockets for a drachma. She found one and threw it into the rainbow. "Oh, Iris, goddess of the Rainbow, please accept my offering. Show me Leo Valdez."

The rainbow shimmered and showed Leo. He was sitting at a work bench, head on the table, asleep. Piper yelled to get his attention. He looked up, startled. "Huh?"

"Leo, I," Piper began, but Leo's face suddenly became angry. He raised his hand and slashed through the Iris Message before Piper had the chance to yell, "No."

He was mad. And who could blame him? Piper knew he wouldn't want to talk to her for a while. Maybe she should just let it be…so she did.

* * *

The Iris Message from Piper made Leo even madder than he already was. That was saying a lot considering how mad he originally was. He stared bitterly at _it._ Piper's present. He had contemplated throwing it against a wall and watching it break into a thousand pieces, but in the end he just couldn't bring himself to do it. He had worked so hard on it, and he had lost so many of his projects that he couldn't bring himself to destroy one on purpose. Even the Argo II hadn't survived.

* * *

Piper couldn't stop thinking about him.

"He must be so lonely at Camp Half-Blood," Piper said to Jason one day.

"He has Percy and Annabeth," Jason replied with a shrug. He had finally lost his dazed look when the topic of Leo came up.

"Yeah, but they won't be very social at the moment. They're still recovering from Tartarus."

"Piper," Jason said, sounding frustrated. "For the past month it's just been nonstop talk about Leo. Let it go for Zeus' sake. I'm sure he's fine!" Piper stepped back. Jason had never talked to her that way before.

"Well, I'm sorry for being worried about my friend," she said quietly. _Don't cry Piper, don't cry. Stay strong. Hold yourself together._

"Piper, I'm sorry. It's just getting a bit much, you know. You're not the same, and I just…I'm sorry," Jason apologized. Piper nodded.

"Maybe we can visit him sometimes?" she said hopefully.

"Piper, it's not easy or safe for demigods to travel across the country. We can't keep bouncing back and forth, we have to pick a spot and stick with it."

"Oh. Maybe…maybe we can bring him here!" Piper exclaimed. Jason snorted.

"Piper, please. He would hate it here. It's way too disciplined for him. He'd be miserable. Now please, try and stop thinking about Leo." He walked away to attend some Praetor thing with Reyna.

"I'm miserable here too," Piper muttered.

* * *

They did everything they possibly could, but it just wasn't enough. Leo refused to listen to them, to talk to them, to so much as _look _at them. He had every right to be mad at them.

"Why should I listen to you, when you went and forgot about me?" he finally burst one day. "The great Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase don't have time for the lowly mechanic, so just stop."

"Leo, we're sorry," Annabeth tried, feeling horrible for forgetting him.

"I'm sure you are, but you don't need to try and be nice to make up for it. You've moved on from the Seven, I get it. I never expected you to stay for long. You don't need to pretend to be my friend," Leo said gloomily.

"We're not pretending! Valdez, we're really friends," Percy tried to assure him. He wouldn't listen.

"Friends don't forget about each other."

"Fine Leo. Maybe we are bad friends," Annabeth conceded, "but you still have to talk to Piper. She's losing it without you."

"Piper's not my friend either," Leo said bitterly. "She forgot about me too."

"But she remembers now! She's trying to fix this!" Annabeth yelled, frustrated by Leo's lack of response.

Leo put down the spring he had been playing with and looked her straight in the eye. "Not everything can be fixed."

* * *

Piper hated Camp Jupiter. It was too disciplined for her liking. She hadn't laughed for ages. And Jason had been acting weird too. It was like he was avoiding her. He always stiffened up around her, and he had been acting extremely secretive. Not to mention, she was already annoyed with him for his lack of concern towards Leo.

She was walking through some trees, mulling over these thoughts when she heard the voice that was unmistakably _his_. "I'm sorry."

Then another voice, this one female. "You can't go on like this Jason. It's not right to either of us. You'll have to tell her soon, or she'll be hurt."

"But it feels wrong to do that. I never should have brought her here," Jason said. Piper's heart lurched. He was talking about her! Without thinking she stormed towards the sound of the voices. She entered a clearing and found Jason sitting on a rock, hand in hand with Reyna.

Her worst fears had been confirmed.

"Piper," Jason began when he saw her. "Listen, I was going to tell you, but…"

"But what? Thought it was better to…to cheat," Piper said, her voice strangled. _You will not cry, you will not cry, _she told herself. "I can't believe that you-" she didn't finish the sentence, she couldn't. She turned and ran, vaguely hearing Jason calling her name.

She didn't stop until she was at the other side of Camp Jupiter, where she finally sat on a large rock and sobbed. She had followed Jason all the way here…and he didn't even want her. Leo was the one who needed her. Leo was the one she needed. She heard footsteps behind her, but they weren't Jason's.

"Piper?" Reyna said tentatively. She walked over and sat on the rock beside Piper. "I'm sorry. I told him not to, I told him it would just hurt people in the end, but he thought that-"

"How long?" Piper interrupted.

Reyna sighed. "We were never actually dating. I would never allow it, not while he was dating you. We just met up sometimes, and talked. We both knew that we liked each other, but neither one of use would admit it. Then one day we were talking and…and we kissed. Jason was horrified; he was so upset with himself. Piper, he never wanted to hurt you."

"But he did," Piper managed between sobs. "He should have told me."

"That's what I told him," Reyna assured. "He was too afraid of hurting you and losing you as a friend. We never took things that far again; we never even talked again until today. We were talking about what to do about it. I am so sorry Piper."

"Reyna, will you do me a favor?" Piper asked suddenly, wiping away her tears and straightening up.

"Yes, anything," said Reyna, hastily standing up too.

"I need a Pegasus," she said firmly. "I'm going to Camp Half-Blood. I'm going _home_." Reyna nodded.

"Do you need someone to accompany you?"

"No. I want to do this myself. Please don't ask me why." Reyna gave a small smile.

"I understand why, I don't need to ask. Should I tell the others?"

"No," Piper said quickly. "I think I can skip the awkward goodbye's."

"I'll meet you in 10 minutes." With that, Reyna was gone.

_I'm going home, _Piper thought, almost happy. _I'm going home_.

* * *

Penguins. Leo was seeing penguins. Leo liked penguins. Penguins were funny. Funny penguins. Cute penguins. Silly penguins. Penguins were silly. Penguins lived on ice. Ice was slippery. Things slipped on ice. Leo was slipping.

* * *

The ride was long and far from comfortable. Piper lost track of how long it took, but when she finally saw the familiar strawberry fields she let out a huge sigh of relief. She had started doubting her idea to fly alone 10 minutes into the trip, but no monsters had attacked. Before taking off, she had sent a request to Aphrodite to keep her safe, and maybe she was imagining it, but she was sure that there was a flock of doves flying with her during the entire journey.

She guided the Pegasus she was riding (her name was Mint) down to the place where she new the stables were, and she managed to land safely. _Thank you mom_, she thought, hoping Aphrodite got her message. She dismounted, then turned to Mint and stroked her dark brown coat.

"Thank you," she murmured. "You can go back home whenever you're ready." Mint whinnied in response, flapping her wings a little. Piper smiled and left the stables.

The first thing she saw was Annabeth walking hand in hand with Percy. When they noticed her, they just stared for a good minute before Annabeth flung herself at her.

"Piper, what are you doing here!" she squealed, crushing Piper in a hug. Piper pulled away and looked at Percy.

"I don't know how you managed to survive at Camp Jupiter," she stated. "I can't stand it there." Percy smiled at her.

"Well, to be fair, I didn't know who I was and for the majority of the time I was out on a quest. Not really a fair comparison." Piper smiled, but then her face became serious.

"How's Leo?"

Percy and Annabeth exchanged a look. "Not good."

"Where is he?"

"Same place he's been ever since you left," Percy shrugged. "Bunker Nine."

Before he could even finish the word 'nine' Piper was running towards it. She needed to see Leo. She needed to apologize. She arrived and found the door shut. When she banged on it, however, it opened easily. _Percy and Annabeth must have left it open_, Piper thought to herself as she tentatively stepped inside.

She saw Leo sitting on a work bench, slumped over on the table. She was about to go talk to him when something caught her eye. It was a silver box, with her name written in large, loopy gold across it. She walked closer to it, and remembered something that Annabeth had told her.

"_He knew that you were leaving. He overheard you talking to Jason. Apparently he even made you a going away gift. But you never actually told him, and that hurt him._" Was this the gift that he had made her?

Cautiously, she approached the box and ran her fingers over it. There was a small button on one side, which she gently pressed. The box sprang open, revealing a bronze model of Camp Half-Blood. It began to spin slightly as a song began to play.

_Our friendship began long ago,  
So long, but it seems so close,  
You stuck by my side the whole time,  
We've been together for every fight_

_ But then, he asked you to leave, oh,  
And I guess, you couldn't say no,  
But wherever it is you may go,  
There's one thing I need you to know_

_ Ohh, there's one thing I need you to know_

_ I'll be here, I'll be here,  
Long after the fire's burned down,  
And the leaves are withered and brown,  
And the queen is now wearing her crown_

_ I'll be here, I'll be here,  
Long after the fire's burned down,  
And the leaves are withered and brown,  
And the queen is now wearing her crown_

_ And if ever you feel the need to return,  
I'll be waiting with all open arms,  
Because my life's not the same,  
Oh my life's not the same,  
Without my Beauty Queen's charms_

_ So remember that you're always welcome,  
No matter what time it may be,  
Whether spring, fall, summer or winter,  
You'll always have a place next to me,  
_

_No matter what time it may be,  
Ohh, no matter what time it may be_

_ I'll be here, I'll be here,  
Long after the fire's burned down,  
And the leaves are withered and brown,  
And the queen is now wearing her crown_

_ I'll be here, I'll be here,  
Long after the fire's burned down,  
And the leaves are withered and brown,  
And the queen is now wearing her crown_

_ Ohh, my queen is now wearing her crown_

Piper felt her throat constrict. The song was about her…Leo had done all this and she…she had forgotten him. She felt horrible. She was furious with herself. There was a loud bang and she spun around to find herself face to face with Leo. He looked angry.

"Leo, I-" Piper began, but he cut her off.

"Leave."

"Leo," Piper pleaded, but he wouldn't have it.

"Leave, Piper. Now," he said emotionlessly.

"I'm sorry."

"It doesn't matter." He strode over and began pushing her towards the door. Once she was out, he slammed the door shut, leaving Piper alone.

* * *

A week passed, and Leo still wouldn't talk to her. No matter how many times she banged on the Bunker door. Piper still preferred it over Camp Half-Blood. At least Annabeth was here.

"He'll come around," she assured her.

"I don't know about that," Piper answered sadly. "I'm going to the cabin. I'll see you later."

When she arrived at her cabin, there was a surprise waiting for her.

"Hello Piper." A beautiful woman was sitting on her bed. She was wearing dark jeans and a sparkly white sweater. Perfect brown curls framed her face which was complete with sparkly silver eye-shadow and dark pink lipstick.

"Mom?" Piper said in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Visiting you," Aphrodite said with a shrug, as though it were a normal occurrence. "Oh, and, no offense, but you're a mess."

Piper looked down at her gray sweatpants and black sweat shirt, and became uncomfortably aware of her severely knotted hair. "Well I haven't exactly been worrying about my appearance lately," she said moodily, sitting down on the bed across from her mom.

"I know," Aphrodite said understandingly. "Hope you don't mind if I fix you up a bit." Before Piper could respond, a pink puff of air formed around her, and when it was gone she looked different. She was now wearing a pair of lime green sweatpants with an oversized blue shirt, and her hair was braided.

"I didn't need that," Piper complained.

"Yes, you did," Aphrodite answered firmly. "At least you're still dressed for comfort. Anyways, I have something I need to talk to you about."

"I just can't believe that I actually forgot him," said Piper, not really paying attention.

"There's a reason why you forgot him. That's what I'm here to talk to you about," Aphrodite said calmly. "You know about the fortune cookie given to him by Nemesis, right?" Piper nodded.

"He said something about Percy and Annabeth falling into Tartarus because of it."

"Well, opening the fortune cookie meant sacrificing something. He opened the cookie, but the sacrifice wasn't Percy and Annabeth. The sacrifice was having his worst fear come true." Piper looked at her mother quizzically. "His worst fear is to have his friends forget him. So that's what happened. Nemesis erased Leo from your minds."

"What?" Piper all but shrieked. She was sick of all the memory stealing the gods were up to lately. "But then…how come I still remembered?"

"That's the complicated part. Piper…you and Leo have a very strong bond. The stronger the bond between two people, the harder it is to make them forget. It was hard for you to forget. You knew something was missing. All it took was a little piece of information to bring all of your memories back. That's why you remembered. Then when you brought it up, others began to remember too, but not all of them remember as well as you do, simply because their bond was not as strong. That's why Jason hasn't been caring as much. He doesn't remember the way he feels about Leo."

"But, he and Leo were best friends," said Piper, still trying to absorb this new information.

"But their relationship was weak. It was based off of Mist-induced memories. They might have shown that they cared for each other a lot, but they're bond wasn't strong at all," Aphrodite explained.

"But…what about Hazel and Frank? I mean, I guess I understand Frank, but Hazel?"

"Hazel's connection with Leo was based off of her connection with Sammy. Nemesis took away her memories of Sammy too, so her bond with Leo was weakened."

"How do Percy and Annabeth remember so well?"

"Leo and Annabeth formed a very strong bond while working on the ship. Annabeth felt like Leo was one of the only people who she could talk to about complex things, other than her siblings. Their bond wasn't as strong as yours, but when you reminded her of it, she remembered quickly."

Piper pondered this. "And Percy?"

"Well, there are many factors contributing to Percy's bond. For one thing, Leo and him had a _real _friendship, not a Mist one. He also has an extremely strong bond with Annabeth, so strong that it links him with Leo as well. And then, Percy's fatal flaw is loyalty. He automatically builds a strong connection with anyone he meets." Piper nodded.

"Will you tell Leo all that?" she asked. Aphrodite smiled.

"Already have." She stood up. "I'll be going now."

"Wait!" Piper said, standing up too. "How come Nemesis didn't think about all this bond stuff?" Aphrodite gave a sly smile.

"Revenge never remembers about Love," she said simply. "Shield your eyes Piper."

Piper closed her eyes, and when she opened them, Aphrodite was gone. Love? Piper wasn't in _love _with Leo…was she?

_Clearly you are, _a voice in the back of her mind said. Piper smiled to herself. Maybe Leo would now finally listen to her. She walked to Bunker 9, feeling more optimistic than she had in days.

But Leo wasn't in Bunker 9. The door was unlocked, and Piper searched everywhere, but he was nowhere to be found. She stopped a wood nymph who was walking by, and asked if she had seen him.

"Oh, the fire boy? I saw him walking towards the beach," she answered. Piper nodded and set off in that direction.

She found him sitting on a rock with his feet in the water. Cautiously, she walked over to where he was, the soft sand parting under her steps. She sat next to him. Neither of them said a word.

"Leo," Piper started. He turned to look at her, and she saw that his brown eyes looked broken. "Are you okay?" He shook his head.

"I'm sorry," he said. His voice was cracked. He sounded so un-Leo like, it killed Piper inside.

"You shouldn't be."

"You shouldn't be either," he answered. They sat in silence for a while more. "I don't know if I'll ever be okay Piper. I fell too far." Piper got up, turned to face him, and knelt on the sand in front of him, taking his hands. They were rough.

"You'll climb back up," she said earnestly, searching his eyes for some sign of the old Leo. The real Leo.

"It's not possible."

"Anything is possible," Piper insisted.

Leo shook his head. "I can't fly. That's not going to change."

"If you wanted to fly, you could go build wings. If you wanted to go underwater, you could build a submarine. _Anything is possible_, Leo."

"I slipped too far," Leo said stubbornly. "Not everything can be fixed."

"That's not true. Everything can be fixed. There is always a way. Don't lose hope Leo." She was begging now. He couldn't just detach himself from the world like this. She needed him. "Love can triumph over anything."

"Love?"

"Have you ever wondered why Hephaestus and Aphrodite got married, despite being who they are?" Piper asked. Leo nodded. "They're not that different. Love is a lot like fire. Just like fire, love burns bright and long. It leaves a mark, and sometimes you get burnt, but it can also give you warmth and security. It can also give you hope and light during a hard time."

"Piper. I'm a lost cause," he said quietly, looking down at their hands.

"No you're not," Piper said forcefully. "I refuse to believe it. Leo, there are people who love you and need you to pick yourself back up. People like me." He looked up at her, they're eyes meeting.

"Why are you doing this?"

"Because I love you," Piper answered simply.

"What kind of love?" Leo asked.

Piper, unable to come up with the right words to explain it, let her Aphrodite instinct take control and leaned forward to kiss him. She had imagined kissing him before (blame Aphrodite) and he had always imagined that his lips would be burning hot, but they weren't. They were comfortably warm. Okay, that was the Aphrodite side of her talking for sure. When she pulled away, she saw a spark in Leo's eyes. A spark of the real Leo. He was still there, though covered by something. She intended to uncover it.

"That kind," she said stupidly. Leo smiled, but it was only a ghost of his normal grin. Had being forgotten really done this to him?

"Beauty Queen," he whispered. "I love you too." Piper couldn't stop the smile from spreading across her face. Before she could say anything else, a conch shell blew loudly, signaling that it was dinner time. Piper and Leo stood up hand in hand and began walking towards the Dining Pavilion. Before reaching, however, they met someone unexpected.

Piper saw Jane, tight-faced as ever, leaning on a tree where the sand met grass. But it wasn't exactly Jane. She would never agree to wear a red jacket, black jeans or black boots. And she certainly wouldn't agree to the motorcycle standing a few feet away.

"Aunt Rosa," Leo muttered. Piper turned to look at him.

"Leo, what are you talking about? That's Jane."

"No. It's Nemesis," Leo explained. "You see her as the person you most want revenge on."

Well that made sense. Piper still held a grudge against her dad's old secretary. "What is she doing here?" Leo shrugged.

"You managed to find a way around me," said Nemesis. Her voice was hard and cold. "Love managed to defeat me once more. Maybe I should stop underestimating it. Love is more powerful than it seems. Leo Valdez. It was nice doing business with you." With that, she stalked over to her bike, swung her leg over and rode off. Piper blinked.

"Let's go," she said softly, and they began walking to the Dining Pavilion. Hopefully, things would get better soon.

* * *

**_10 years later…_**

* * *

Leo had found his answer. Looking at his wife, sitting beside him holding a 1 month old baby, he knew it was the right answer.

What is life?

Well, it was different for everyone. Each person had something that made up their life. That made their life worth it. That gave their life meaning. And for Leo, that something was Piper.

Because it was Piper who provided him with hope. It was Piper who provided him with happiness, and support, and everything else he needed. It was Piper who made it possible for him to have two kids – one in Piper's arms and one 2-year-old napping upstairs at the moment. It was Piper.

What is life?

_ His life was Piper._

* * *

**I wasn't too sure about the whole epilogue thing...I just felt like I needed a proper closure...thoughts?  
**

**And the sucky song/poem/thing up there ^ is written by me, so no need to tell me about how we're not allowed to post lyrics or whatever, that's all me. I take full responsibility for that train wreck attempt at...whatever. But I'll still accept comments regarding it...?**

**Review, please, please, please. Means the world and more to me! Gives me writing fuel...**


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